I've always been told "Bicycles must obey the same rules of road as cars" so how is it against the law to ride a bike across the intersection? Do you get out and push your car across the intersection? The "red hand" is for pedestrians, a bike is a "vehicle". IMO.

Posted by J
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Sep 21, 2009 at 4:37 pm

I think the important part was that the young man was not injured. At 14 he is almost old enough for a leaner's permit, so I hope he takes a lesson from this accident and is especially alert once in a car.

Perhaps someone with kids can answer this question for me- Do schools still teach bicycle safety for grammar school age kids? I recall having gotten a "Good Citizen" sticker at about age 5-6 after taking a class about the street signs, crosswalks, and bicycle safety (ie riding in same direction as traffic)

Yes, one is supposed to dismount and walk across the intersection if you intend to use the crosswalk, just as you may not ride a bike on the sidewalk, unless it is clearly posted that bikes may use the sidewalk for whatever reason. Then again I have never (even in Pleasanton) seen anyone pulled over for riding their bike on the sidewalk or through a crosswalk.

Posted by momdriver
a resident of Vintage Hills Elementary School
on Sep 21, 2009 at 10:02 pm

ok this could easily happen - before a car passes through a cross walk on a turn, on either a red or green the driver looks for pedestrians at the corners. If a cyclist comes by at riding speed it would not be enough time for the driver to stop.

As long as we are on the subject I have to deal with a 4 way stop each morning and sometimes cars will come up on my right and block the corner so I can't see if there is someone there. So I have to wait an extra turn . . .any way i guess it is not a big deal I just hate being next to Giant SUVS!

Posted by Concerned Citizen
a resident of Pleasanton Meadows
on Sep 22, 2009 at 2:36 pm

I like how the boy hit the car. Where was the driver? Did he not see the child? Come on people, when kids are crossing the streets to get to our bus-less schools who should be cautious? The kids? The drivers?

I am glad this guy is not hurt! But there is something really wrong with this story!

Posted by johannm
a resident of another community
on Sep 22, 2009 at 3:18 pm

Keep in mind that many streets in Pleasanton are not safe, or marked for bicycles, but instead advise riders "Ok to Ride on Sidewalk" . This is very much an unsafe cop-out. Pleasanton has poorly engineered streets for cyclist, and is very dangerous. Forcing cyclists to round the corner in order to push a walk button puts them in great danger of being clipped by right turning drivers. I could list a dozen crazy situations in this city that put cyclists and peds at risk. Good thing this child wasn't hurt. I hope the money the city saves not fixing these problems is being put aside to pay the lawsuits.

@ johannm - Guess what? Pleasanton has a great Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee set-up to develop and execute a plan to improve access for bikes and pedestrians. You are welcome to attend the meetings, notices are placed in the Weekly, and voice your criticisms and hopefully your solutions to all the "problems" you cite in your post. The City does not have coffers overflowing with funds to make everything happen overnight, but they are making good progress with crosswalk signage and lighting, signal light loops for bikes, and road re-striping for wider/safer bike lanes.

Posted by johannm
a resident of another community
on Sep 22, 2009 at 4:30 pm

Curious,
Good news - it means they are aware of the problem. Any improvement is welcome, and a town like this should be putting pedestrians and cyclists first. There's not enough money for anything right now, but it should be a high priority. I'd love to see what the committee proposes, I don't really need to come up with solutions, as cities like Davis have worked this out already, it's the commitment that matters.

Posted by J
a resident of Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Sep 22, 2009 at 4:46 pm

No offense meant to you johannm, but whether the items you mentioned were in place or not cannot instill in the kids to use them. I wish someone could devise a way to instill this in kids so they do it one auto-pilot; something akin to muscle-memory

Posted by one mom
a resident of Pleasanton Meadows
on Sep 22, 2009 at 5:04 pm

This boy was not the only car vs. child bike accidnet on Monday. A student at Hart also was hit by a car. My son also rides to school and yes... we all need to watch out for our children their safety is always first. However, the kids also need to know and follow the laws. I have on several occasions watched kids by Amador as well as Hart cross large intersections on the red hand because they see the green light which is for CARS not the crosswalk. I have even watched the crossing guard frantically try to wave off a bike from crossing the intersection in the crosswalk as a car was turning right onto Black. The child (High School) not only didn't stop he flipped off the guard!!

Posted by old bicyclist
a resident of Birdland
on Sep 22, 2009 at 7:04 pm

Eons ago I learned that bicycles in the road follow the rules of the road. That means actually stopping at 4 way stops (I rarely see anyone on a bike do this - from children to adults). Bike lanes didn't exist where I lived but they did in The Netherlands - bikes have their own lanes and you follow the bike rules. Pedestrians had their own path just for walkers. My family thought that was great!

If in the crosswalk and using the pedestrian crosswalk with a bike, we were taught to get off the bike and walk the bike. I asked my kids after their safety training at Alisal - they had no recollection and thought I was stupid. They really think I'm stupid now - they're teenagers :) If looking at how people behave, I must be wrong that pedestrian crosswalks are for people walking, strollers & wheel chairs - not for a bicycle to just zoom down the sidewalk and into the street. Oh, yes, at Valley & Greenwood there is an adult (probably 30s) who often is running, and if he gets to the street, he will jog across Greenwood with the red hand and the green arrow for those turning from Valley onto Greenwood. I'm not sure if I had to wait until he fully crossed illegally. I just crossed after he passed the 1/2 mark as I wanted to make the short light.

Posted by Your Neighbor
a resident of Pleasanton Valley
on Sep 23, 2009 at 12:03 am

It's not that complicated folks... If you're on a bike and you're using the pedestrian crosswalk, you must become a pedestrian; which means you walk your bike across. Does that sound awkward? Well then you should behave as a vehicle and wait for the traffic lights. You can't have it both ways; either you're a vehicle or you're not.

Posted by Teri
a resident of Foxborough Estates
on Sep 23, 2009 at 10:23 am

I did not see the actual bike hit the car but I did hear the crunch when the bicycle ran into the car. I was at the intersection of Black and Santa Rita when it happened. The driver of the car was an older woman who stopped and did talk to the young man. The bike rider's helmet was on the ground unbuckled so it appears he did not have his helmet on properly. Luckily he was not hurt although his bike sustained major damage to the front wheel. That is a busy intersection and yes kids do cross at the last minute. Glad to hear the young man was not hurt.

Posted by Me Too
a resident of Canyon Creek
on Sep 24, 2009 at 10:06 pm

Must be a slow post day too! Honestly, a kid hit the side of a car with a bike. How is that even a big deal? Why are the police involved? Oh, I know, the driver was all upset that there was a scratch on their car.

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